Giving Compass' Take:

• Devex reports on the growing political crisis in Venezuela and how it's affecting surrounding countries, specifically Colombia, which has had to support displaced citizens.

• What can international aid groups do to ease the burden on Venezuela's neighbors and provide support to those who lack basic needs, such as food and access to safe shelter? Raising finance is crucial.

• Here's why the Venezuela refugee crisis could possibly exceed the one in Syria.

At daybreak every morning, the Simón Bolívar bridge on the Colombia-Venezuela border heaves with foot traffic. Mothers and their infant children walk across, while savvy entrepreneurs earn small change carting their luggage in hand trucks.

Colombian border authorities do not know exactly how many are crossing each day, but they say 20,000 would be a conservative estimate. These people are fleeing Venezuela, a country that is oil rich but mired in economic and political crisis. Some cross temporarily to find work, food, or medicine; others choose to stay.

The economic policies of Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro caused inflation to reach more than 2,400 percent last year, according to the International Monetary Fund.

Food shortages in supermarkets are widespread, while the military, loyal to Maduro, handles public food distribution centers. Those fleeing say that only those in the regime’s favor receive handouts. Many instead turn to the black market where prices are exorbitant. A recent study by three Venezuelan universities found that two-thirds of survey respondents had lost over 11 kilograms in weight during 2017 ...

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees is currently running an appeal for $46 million to assist displaced Venezuelans across the region, including those that have fled to Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, and further afield. But a spokesperson said just 6 percent of the appeal has so far been raised, and many observers believe the figure is far too low to begin with.

Read the full article about Colombia aid groups by Joe Parkin Daniels at Devex International Development.